8 Proven Strategies for Demand Generation in New Brands

One of the most significant challenges that new businesses face when they enter the marketplace, comes in the form of demand generation. Simply put, demand generation is all about making sure that customers want whatever product or service you’re selling. Usually, this is achieved through a gradual and holistic process that involves everything from email campaigns to tradeshows, and organic web traffic.

Demand generation starts with identifying the audiences most likely to respond to your message or ideas before you shepherd those audiences into a funnel that addresses the conversion process. So, now that you know what demand generation is, how can you access it for your new brand?

1. Give Something Valuable Away

Whether it’s a discount code, a content download, or a promotional campaign, giving away valuable things can be more effective than you think. Not only does this method help to create a sense of trust between your brand and your audience, but it also makes you seem more generous. On top of that, because you’re offering something of value, your visitors are far more likely to reward you with their time, their attention, and even their loyalty.

2. Use Lookalike Facebook Audiences

If you’re already advertising on Facebook (which you should be), it’s a good idea to consider lookalike audiences for building demand. Lookalike audiences represent a type of custom audience designed to resemble users who have already shown an interest in your brand. Using this method will allow you to double the reach of your Facebook advertising, by reaching out to customers who are likely to engage with you.

3. Partner with Industry Superstars

Webinars are a fantastic way to interact with your audience. They’re easy to produce, and they don’t cost much to make, but it can be hard for your webinars to get attention if you don’t yet have a presence online. That means that you’re going to need to borrow authority from someone else, by making connections with key influencers.

Working alongside industry superstars will help to boost your brand awareness, and give extra credence to your authority within a particular niche.

4. Use Managed Display Campaign Placements

Display advertising gets a lot of bad press these days, but it still has the power to be effective when used properly. Using managed placements can allow advertisers to control the audience that they reach out to with their display ads, by limiting where their ads appear. Since the key purpose of display ads is to raise awareness, you can use this method to ensure a wider and more successful demand generation campaign.

5. Try Display Remarketing

Many marketers find that display remarketing is an incredibly useful tool for boosting conversion rates. After all, it gives you a second chance to make a first impression on your audience. However, remarketing can also be a great tool for brand awareness.

By remarketing yourself to people who have already seen your advertisements elsewhere, you increase their chances that they’ll click through and see what you’re all about. After all, there’s always the chance that they were distracted or drawn away from your company first time around, but are still interested in your product or service.

6. Invest in Content Creation

Inbound marketing can be essential to any demand generation strategy. It’s important to remember that content is always going to be king. Developing a powerful content strategy can help to add value to your company, and make it easier for other people to find your business. Though content is a long-term investment, it’s often the best way to ensure that your brand has a sustainable presence online.

If you’re already regularly posting blogs, then you might need to think about some of the ways that you can make them more valuable. For instance, introduce fresh data or new insights that your customers can’t get anywhere else.

7. Enhance Email Marketing

Though often considered a little old-fashioned, email marketing is actually one of the most important factors in any demand generation experience. To make the most of email marketing, you’ll need to be prepared to test everything you do and adapt your campaigns according to the unique requirements of your target audience. Remember, everything from your headlines, to your subject lines, and the pictures you use in your email can and should be tested.

8. Use a Lead Scoring System

Finally, demand generation isn’t just about getting more leads for your company, it’s also about making sure that you get the right quality of leads. Lead scoring can help you to evaluate the historical behaviour of prospects to determine whether a lead is “hot”, or “cold”. The hot leads can be nurtured by your sales teams, while colder leads can either be ignored, or nurtured through a more comprehensive marketing strategy.